Search This Blog

Height matters

In the months immediately before an attempt is made on the Bob Graham, it seems 10,000ft of ascent per week, is the target to have in mind. Height gain being far more important than simply clocking up the miles, it is this that most rely upon to build the stamina required. Being completely useless when it comes to any kind of formal training regime, I was quite pleased therefore to note that we had climbed more than 15,000 ft over the course of a long weekend in the Lakes.

Starting and finishing at Dunmail Raise, we ran legs three and four, continuing via Derwent Water on the second day to stay in Braithwaite. A painful fall while descending towards Honister on day two, put pay to plans to run leg two back to the car. Having made our way slowly to Threlkeld and followed the approach to Clough Head as far as the old Coach Road, we dropped back to the road, passing Thirlmere on the quiet side and eventually hobbling over the top of Dunmail Raise. And while the climbing was the important thing, of the 56 miles covered, two thirds were done in no small amount of pain, my left leg sporting two knee caps for much of the distance. It was a good test - pain, after all is transitory and I expect there will be plenty of it, on the day.

Heading for Esk Pike and what is arguably the hardest section of the route...

...but also one of the best, depending on your point of view.

Beautiful light dropping into Wasdale...

...crossing rivers with no water, despite being one of the wettest places in England.

Heading for Steeple on day two - one of the finest summits on the route...

...and reflecting on another long day, beside Derwent Water, a few hours later, the water level so low, one might have been forgiven for thinking the tide was out.

Comments

Popular Posts

A few images from two days on the fells, linking sections of the Bob Graham - just the last and hopefully the easiest few miles left to run now, those from the summit of Robinson back to Keswick. Mixed weather gave way to a beautiful evening on the last day - looking back towards Bowfell. The climb of Dale Head from Honister and the ridge towards Hindscarth proved easier and more enjoyable respectively than expected - Red Pike (the one not on the route) the prominent summit in the distance. And the steep descent to Honister, late in the afternoon. But not too late for the café and cake. All good.

Passing through Hebden Bridge recently, I was reminded of a day in Spring - a day snatched between work and weather, in the first real warmth of the year with the first of the curlew on the moors above. Driving through the narrow streets already shadowed by the steep hills among which the town nestles, I wondered as I often have about my own feelings for the place. It is a town of character and one in which there is a sense of community long since lost in all too many places, and when the sun is out, it is vibrant, full of life and colour. It also reminds me of places I climbed in the winter, in Norway, in which celebrations are held each year on the first day that the sun reaches the town centre...Like many such places, feelings run high among those who favour the area, indeed if you were to listen to many local mountain-bikers, you might be forgiven for thinking there was nowhere else on the planet worth riding. But for me it has always been a place to run... ...among the wooded vall…

After spending so many years so close to this part of the world, the only surprise is that I haven't spent more time here before now. Another early start and another beautiful morning, running the Ribble Valley.Nb. Both the pictures in this and the previous post were taken on an iPhone - while I will happily run with the SLR in a small pack, I find myself doing so less and less, principally because on mornings like these, I would be stopping every few minutes to take photos. It remains a dilemma and on many occasions I have sorely missed the camera, but more often, especially on these longer routes, I am grateful to be free of the pack and the weight.